Delhi: Zbee electric vehicles to offer last mile connectivity

This is a discussion on Delhi: Zbee electric vehicles to offer last mile connectivity within Commercial Vehicles, part of the BHP India category; Swedish company Clean Motion has developed the Zbee, an electric three-wheeler. This vehicle is expected to be used in Delhi ...

Swedish company Clean Motion has developed the Zbee, an electric three-wheeler. This vehicle is expected to be used in Delhi later this year to offer last mile connectivity from metro stations.

Clean Motion has tied up with DLF for this project. From July, 50-75 Zbee electric vehicles are expected to connect DLF Place Saket mall with Malviya Nagar Station. In the second phase, these vehicles are likely to be used in Cyber City hub, Gurgaon.

Priced at Rs. 3 lakh, the Zbee is made of fibre reinforced plastic. It measures 2,400 mm in length, 1,250 mm in width and 1,500 mm in height. The vehicle weighs 230 kg and can travel at speeds up to 45 kph. It comes with a lithium battery which, with a special rapid charger, takes 20 minutes to be fully charged. With a normal electric point, it takes 2 hours. On a full charge, Clean Motion claims that the vehicle can travel up to 50 km. It also comes with charging infrastructure and a kiosk with a solar panel. On the safety front, the Zbee is equipped with 3-point seatbelts.

Till now, Clean Motion has invested about US $ 10 million in India. The company is in the process of localising the Zbee. It has a manufacturing facility in Faridabad which can roll out 200-250 vehicles every month. 25 vehicles are ready and awaiting registration and RTO clearance.

Clean Motion will not sell the vehicles, but lease and rent them out under a franchise model. A player needs to franchise at least 25 vehicles with repayment spanning over a period of 3-5 years without any upfront cost.

Zbee vehicles are currently being used in European countries and Indonesia.

Wow. Great news for me as I work in Cyber City. These vehicles will surely bring the autorickshaws who charge a flat rate of Rs 40-50 for even 1 km in line and help the end users to commute easily.
One off topic question: Why has this market not been exploited by Bajaj, Piaggio or even Mahindra which has capability for electric vehicles?

A very aesthetically appealing electric 3 wheeler that would help people get a safer option to travel in than an autorickshaw.
I have one apprehension though- would any one invest in operating this vehicle in preference to the e-rickshaws that are already quite popular all over the city?

- Who would be driving them, and what kind of training would the drivers receive?
- What would be the profit sharing model?
- Would they compete with the existing transport modalities like auto-rickshaws and e-rickshaws?
- What power source would they use to charge?